{"id":1861,"date":"2026-08-18T00:44:04","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T00:44:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/?p=1861"},"modified":"2026-08-18T00:44:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T00:44:04","slug":"warning-if-you-have-found-this-insect-in-your-home-its-a-sign-that-you-need-to","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/?p=1861","title":{"rendered":"Warning! If you have found this insect in your home, it\u2019s a sign that you need to\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

How to identify earwigs<\/h2>\n
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  • Earwigs are about 5\/8 inch long, with a flat, reddish brown body and very short wings.<\/li>\n
  • They have medium length antennae and chewing mouthparts.<\/li>\n
  • They have a pair of strong pinchers (cerci) on the tip of their abdomen.\n
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    • Males have stout, strongly curved cerci that are widely separated at the base.<\/li>\n
    • Females possess slender, straight pinchers that are close together.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      Earwigs use their pinchers\u00a0to protect themselves and to grab and hold prey.<\/p>\n

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      • Nymphs are similar to adults but are smaller.<\/li>\n
      • Immature earwigs have slender, straight cerci.<\/li>\n
      • Young earwigs are generally lighter in color than adults.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

        Behavior and habits of earwigs<\/h2>\n

        What they eat<\/h3>\n

        Earwigs can be found under potted plants, leaves, welcome mats and other objects. They are also seen in cracks between pavers, bricks and similar places.<\/p>\n

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        • You can also find them on plants in buds and folded leaves.<\/li>\n
        • Earwigs are scavengers feeding on damaged and decaying plant matter.<\/li>\n
        • They can feed on weakened or dead insects and other small organisms.<\/li>\n
        • Earwigs can also feed on healthy plant material.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          Life cycle of earwigs<\/h3>\n

          Earwigs mate in the fall and males and females usually spend the winter together in specially constructed nests. In early spring, females force the males out and then lay eggs.<\/p>\n

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          • Female earwigs are very maternal, which is unusual for insects.<\/li>\n
          • They guard and protect their eggs and newly hatched young.<\/li>\n
          • Eggs hatch in about a week.<\/li>\n
          • Earwig nymphs emerge from nests sometime from late May to early June.<\/li>\n
          • They mature into adults in late June or early July and are active through fall.
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            Damage caused by earwigs<\/h2>\n
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            Earwigs as a household nuisance<\/h3>\n

            Earwigs can enter homes and other buildings during summer (July and August), sometimes in large numbers. They may also be seen at other times of the year.<\/p>\n

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            • They do not cause damage to people, property or food.<\/li>\n
            • They do not reproduce indoors and are only nuisances.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

              Earwigs cannot use their pincers to attack. They are harmless to people.<\/p>\n

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              • They can grab onto objects with their pincers, but cannot squeeze very hard.<\/li>\n
              • Earwigs can give off a foul odor due to the liquid released from their abdomen.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                An individual earwig does not live long indoors. Earwigs can continue to enter buildings throughout the summer.<\/p>\n

                Earwigs as a garden pest<\/h3>\n

                Earwigs feed on a variety of vegetables and flowers and are active from late June to October.<\/p>\n

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                • They chew irregular holes in leaves and flower blossoms of marigolds, dahlias, butterfly bush and hostas.<\/li>\n
                • They can attack corn silk and seedlings.<\/li>\n
                • Larger plants can tolerate this feeding.<\/li>\n
                • Large number of earwigs can damage or even kill seedlings and flowering plants.<\/li>\n
                • Earwig feeding\u00a0may look like slug feeding.\u00a0Slugs\u00a0leave a slime trail but earwigs do not.<\/li>\n
                • Earwig damage can also be confused with\u00a0cutworm\u00a0and even rabbit feeding.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                  To find out which pest is causing the damage, use a flashlight to check under plants, at night.<\/p>\n

                  How to get rid of earwigs<\/h2>\n
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                  Some steps can be taken to reduce earwig numbers in your home and garden. But, when earwig numbers are high, you might have earwig problems even after taking these steps.<\/p>\n

                  Keep your home and garden clean<\/h3>\n
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                  • Clean up debris that earwigs can hide under, such as leaves, plant debris, bricks, piles of lumber and similar things.<\/li>\n
                  • Thin out or remove mulch.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                    Trapping earwigs<\/h3>\n

                    You can set out rolled up newspapers or similar objects to trap earwigs.<\/p>\n

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                    • Place old tuna fish cans baited with fish oil or vegetable oil.<\/li>\n
                    • Set them out during evening in areas where you have noticed earwigs in your garden.<\/li>\n
                    • In the morning, shake the traps above a pail of soapy water to remove and kill the insects.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                      Excess moisture attracts earwigs<\/h3>\n
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                      • Minimize excess moisture in the landscape.<\/li>\n
                      • Be sure that the landscape has good drainage and that irrigation systems are working properly.<\/li>\n
                      • Water more thoroughly and deeply but less often so the surface of the soil remains drier.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                        Seal any points of entry<\/h3>\n
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                        • Caulk and repair any obvious spaces, cracks or gaps around the outside of your home at ground level.<\/li>\n
                        • Pay special attention to areas around doors and windows and the juncture of the siding and the foundation.<\/li>\n
                        • Also, watch around water faucets and vents.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                          Even with these steps, some earwigs can still get inside your home. If you see any earwigs inside your home, remove them with a vacuum or a broom and dust pan.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                          How to identify earwigs Earwigs are about 5\/8 inch long, with a flat, reddish brown body and very short wings.…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1862,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1861","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1861","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1861"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1861\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1863,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1861\/revisions\/1863"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1862"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1861"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1861"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dishdaily.delicedcook.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1861"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}